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55. The New England Confederation, 1643.
55．新英格兰联邦（1643年）
In 1640 the Long Parliament met in England, and in 1645 Oliver Cromwell and the Puritans destroyed the royal army in the battle of Naseby. In these troubled times England could do little to protect the New England colonists, and could do nothing to punish them for acting independently. The New England colonists were surrounded by foreigners. There were the French on the north and the east, and the Dutch on the west. The Indians, too, were living in their midst and might at any time turn on the whites and kill them. Thinking all these things over, the four leading colonies decided to join together for protection. They formed the New England Confederation, and drew up a constitution. The colonists living in Rhode Island and in Maine did not belong to the Confederation, but they enjoyed many of the benefits flowing from it; for it was quite certain that the Indians and the French and the Dutch would think twice before attacking any of the New England settlements.
除了已经描述过的那些移民，还有一些殖民者生活在新罕布什尔和缅因。马萨诸塞将新罕布什尔的部分城镇纳入自己的辖区，因为这些城镇中有一部分在它的掌控之下。1640年英格兰的议会冗长未果，而1645年奥利弗·克伦威尔和清教徒在纳斯比战斗中打败了皇家军队，在这个艰难时期，英格兰能为保护新英格兰殖民地居民所做的十分有限，甚至无力讨伐独立运动。新英格兰殖民地居民被外国人所包围，他们的北方和东方是法国人，西方是荷兰人，而印第安人生活在殖民者聚居地，随时可能与白人相遇并杀死白人。考虑到这些，四个主要的殖民地决定联合在一起自卫。他们组建新英格兰联邦，并制定一部宪法。生活在罗得岛和缅因的殖民地居民不属于这个联邦，但是，他们从这个联邦获益匪浅，因为，毫无疑问，印第安人、法国人和荷兰人要攻击新英格兰的居住地必须三思而后行。
56. Social Conditions.
56．社会条件
The New England colonies were all settled on the town system, for there were no industries which demanded large plantations—as tobacco-planting. The New Englanders were small farmers, mechanics, ship-builders, and fishermen. There were few servants in New England and almost no negro slaves. Most of the laborers were free men and worked for wages as laborers now do. Above all, the New Englanders were very zealous in the matter of education. Harvard College was founded in 1636. A few years later a law was passed compelling every town to provide schools for all the children in the town.
新英格兰的殖民地居民都居住在这个城镇网络中，因为这里没有那些需要大种植园（如烟草种植）的工业，新英格兰人是一些小农、手工业者、造船者和渔夫。在新英格兰没有雇佣工，也几乎没有黑奴。多数劳动者是自由人，他们如今天的劳动者一样为工资而劳动。尤其是新英格兰人非常热衷于教育。1636年，他们创建哈佛大学，几年后他们通过一个法律强制所有的城镇为镇上的孩子建立学校。
